Civil Litigation Notes / Assignment Repository:

Activity Prompt:

Introduction

• Legal research is nonlinear
• To be ale to do legal research, you need to be able to read and interpret:
  
  • Cases, statues, legal jargon, court systems and their hierarchies

Legal Research Structure:

1. Plan
2. Log
3. Product

1. Plan

• Identify key issues, main facts, jurisdiction, potential search terms, and legal terminology

2. Log

• Keep records and notes of your legal research
  
  • “I tried…” or “I keep seeing x case…”
  • Keep your log detailed in regards to your search queries, thought processes, results, and failures.
• Record all findings while noting new questions

3. Product

Legal memos are informative and objective, while briefs are arguing a case

Legal memo breakdown:

1. Question presented: Clear statement of legal issues
2. Brief answer: Concise summary of case and legal issues
3. Facts of the case
4. Legal analysis: How laws, cases, and legal rules apply
5. Conclusion: Final answers and recommendations on next steps

Hierarchy of Authorities:

Sources:

• Primary: Thee law
• Secondary: blogs from attorneys, treatises, essentially anything that helps explain the law that isn’t the law itself

The Hierarchy of Authority:

• Level one (most power): The United States Constitution
  
  • Has mandatory or binding authority over the levels below (or courts have to follow what they say)
  • Creates the Federal government
• Level two: Federal law
  
  • This is because of the supremacy clause in the United States Constitution
  • Has mandatory authority over the levels below
• Level three: The Supreme Court
  
  • Interprets United States Constitution and Federal law
  • Highest court in the United States
  • Has mandatory authority over the levels below
• Level four: Court of appeals = circuit
  • Has persuasive authority over courts outside of it's jurisdiction (or a legal source that a court can use to support a decision, but is not required to follow)
• Level five (least power): Trial court = district
  • Has persuasive authority (or a legal source that a court can use to support a decision, but is not required to follow)